Raven - Maiden Ritual
by Esoterica
Copyright © 2010
esotericha at yahoo dot com

Raven scouted out a place that was private enough at night not to be seen, but with enough room for her to walk around in a comfortable circle.
it was a bit cold outside, and she thought she might have to do it inside, but the circle would warm significantly after she started, and it wasn't snowing or anything.
She marked the path to the location with some light-colored stones to guide herself through the dark woods, since she didn't want to use a flashlight.
She still had to bathe, but she could come just as she was, clothed in a warm jacket, as there was no need for outer symbology with these entities that saw directly into the inner mind.
This was her way, discovered not learned, although there could be a debate about that, it was not practicing Wicca, or even Witchcraft per se, but something very old and very special, 'primal' she called it.
It dealt with the Sun as Lord, and the Lady as the Earth, and The Moon was their Daughter, just as she was also the Lord and Lady's daughter, and everyone else and all the invisible people and things were their children too.
They were her true parents, and she loved them, and loved her dear sister, who's time this was in her aspect as 'the Maiden', and this night she would perform the 'Maiden Ritual' to honor their maiden daughter, and her sister.
She felt it was like making a phone call to speak and catch up with and just generally hang out with her sister, and because it was a ritual, they would have a snack together as they would have shared a meal if they were here together.
She marked the center of the circle, and the points of the compass, with some white stones.
She brought a gift for the woods, a few eggs and some milk that was soon to expire, burying them here and there where they felt right.
It was not a sacrifice, since no sacrifices, blood, or payment of any kind was required, the parent sacrifices for the child, not the other way around, nothing at all was required except the willing participation in the rite and respect for the attendees.
She took a ritual bath at dusk, and went as silently as possible to the place she had set up, just after full dark.
A thin crescent moon was rising through the tree branches, and she greeted it as 'The Maiden'.
She spent a few moments just 'getting used to it', sitting on handy rock ledge, then found the center of the circle with the white stone as its marker, wishing she had used a path of leaves or other colors of stones or at least something to outline the circle, as it all became a bit confusing in the darkness.
She walked slowly around the stone, which marked the center of the circle, spiraling outward, walking clockwise in the direction of increase.
Each time she passed her starting point, she spun completely around once, counter-clockwise, the direction the earth spins on its axis, hopefully keeping everything in balance as she wasn't looking to disappear but to manipulate.
Three times round, then three again, then three once more, each time she moved around the circle faster, always spiraling slowly outward toward the outside.
The wind rose, blowing the leaves and grass, keeping her company, a gentle whirling breeze, like a lazy dust devil on a hot day, and she greeted it as a companion.
Sensing the goings-on in the other worlds touching her skin, she opened her mind to all, seeing what was seeable, feeling what was unseen and unseeable.
Her senses throbbed as she caressed the energy of the invisible world.
There was a moment where something whisked by, more than a shadow, that stopped her in her tracks and brought with it a pang of great fear, but she put her hand over her heart and whispered "Lord and Lady keep me Safe." until the danger soon passed.
She knew there were many kinds of life in the other worlds, and the natural fear is your body's reaction to them passing, but she felt better after calling on her parents.
She fought down the mad desire to run and jump as fight or flight kicked in, and she become very aware of something watching her, but her hand on her heart and the whispered phrase calmed the ego-urges.
She remembered a time when the energy she once encountered was so intense she had no choice but to retreat, and the only recourse was to offer her sincere apologies to all the invisible entities around her, witnessing the rite, and she had run all the way home, only to laugh at herself for letting her ego get the best of her.
She began the ritual, the action repeated time and again to instill its meaning into the subconscious mind and imprint it on time forever.
"I call the Lady and the Lord, to be with me this night, to come and view my humble working, and help me in this rite.", she whispered, the word stilted and ancient, a pathway into the subconscious.
She finally stepped into the outer circle, and felt the flow of energy like stepping into a whirlpool, an energy she had called into existence with her mind and with her heart, and she felt the entirety of everything joining together in silent praise for the Maiden, who's lamp hung above, slowly moving through the night.
She felt the presence of the Maiden enter the sphere of the outer circle, and smiling hugely, she dropped to her knees, slipped off her backpack, and brought out a thermos of mulled wine, some small crescent-shaped cookies, and a small moon-shaped charm bracelet trinket.
She hung out with her moon-sister, the two of them sitting there in the grass, exchanging news and sipping and crunching, although she was the only one who had to physically pick things up to eat or drink them.
The wine was hot and spicy, the cookies were licorice and white-sugar coated, and very soon she felt their effects on her physical body, expanding her senses and slipping her beyond this dimension.
All too soon, dawn showed the coming of the Lord, their Father, and it was time to say goodbye until the next quarter-moon.
She brushed cookie crumbs from her hands, and made a small hole in the earth to pour in the wine and the seemingly untouched cookies that were the moon's portion, then she carefully covered it up and replaced the sod with the carefulness one would naturally give their Mother.
She rose to her feet, stiff after sitting on the moist ground, perhaps next time she would bring a mylar blanket, small it but would help with the stiffness.
She slowly walked around the circle the other way, decreasing, and slowly spiraled back from the outer circle into the center once again.
Holding the moon charm trinket in her hand, looking forward to putting it on her 'moon bracelet' from whence it came, she thought that it was a good night, although it only felt like no more than an hour had passed at most!

The End